The Rather Ravenous Garden
by Amethyst Princess 27
Summary: Harkness yanks at the coat, he watches a black button as it pops off the jacket and spin on the ground, the seams begin to rip. Another jerk and the plants jaws tighten, Jack stares at the metal teeth in alarm. "What is this thing?" Minor 10/Rose if any
1. Mostly harmless

Before I forget, allow me to go ahead and state the depressing fact that neither do I own _Doctor Who_ or am I British.

**The Rather Ravenous Garden**

**CHAPTER ONE**

"This isn't Barcelona!" Jack says as he steps out of the TARDIS.

"Beggars can't be choosers Jack," The Doctor states as he follows Rose out of the ship, "You want to go back to the Tinocium Raiders? I bet they'd be welcoming, them and their blasters. You're the one who destroyed their statue of Rexocius the 5th. Great war hero of their world he was. Fought hundreds of battles then died of natural causes at a meager 1,012. His statue is fine for 5,000 years after that until some ape comes over and PUSHES on it!"

"It's not like I took dynamite to it… All I did was lean on it a little and it fell over."

"Thousands of years Jack! Didn't it seem a bit old and unstable?"

Jack turns to the Doctor as he locks up the TARDIS, "What? Like you?"

The Time Lord turns around to face Captain Harkness but doesn't reply, only gives him a harsh stare.

"What's this?"

The two look over to Rose who had wandered over to a dense patch of vegetation, that only thing that was visible through the fog. Miss Tyler was standing near a silver, column-shaped device that had a saucer shaped dome on its top. She moves her hands closer to the metal. The Doctor noticed that as she drew closer to the object it began to shimmer a dull red.

"Oi!" the Doctor shouts, looking over to his companion, "Don't touch that!"

"Why-?" Rose pauses mid-sentence, she backs away from the object as it begins a metallic hum.

The device that was set in the center of the old garden cast a strange reddish hue on the stone floor every couple of seconds. Glass-like vegetation that climbed up the sides of the walls reflected the light as an unusual, emotionless hum began to echo against the stones.

Miss Tyler backs away from the device with care; she lowers her hands and blinks hesitantly. Her back meets something solid and she freezes, barely daring herself to breathe. The worried expression vanishes from her face as her blue eyes meet a familiar pinstripe suit.

She hears a second pair of footsteps and looks over to Captain Harkness as he enters the red glow. He bends closer to a plant that appeared to be dead; the copper coloured leaves seem to reach out as he brushed against them. He turned back as something tugged at his coat; the weed had nipped the tail of the material.

Harkness yanks at the coat, trying to tear it away from the alien plant life. He watches a black button as it pops off the jacket and spin on the round, the seam begins to rip apart. Another jerk and the plants jaws seem to tighten, Jack stares at the metal teeth in sudden alarm.

"What is this thing?!" he yells, panicked at the sight of the copper teeth.

"Hungry," The Doctor mutters, the Time Lords eyes widen as the plant sinks its teeth deeper into the fabric.

Rose, however, is concerned, "Are you okay?"

Harkness looks over to her, smirking, "Will be in a second..."

"Give. It. Back!" he growls, nearly losing his footing as the vegetation fights back, "Now!"

The Doctor steps over to Captain Harkness, a look of doubt crossing his face. He didn't believe what he was seeing.

"Jack!" the Doctor barks in disapproval, "Let it go!"

Harkness doesn't loosen his hold on the material; instead he grips the threads more tightly.

"Jack!" the Time Lord warns.

"It's a high-quality coat!" Jack explains, pulling once more at the material, "The Queen gave it to me… in 1945… after the… second… World War!"

Jack tries to shake the plant off the sleeve, roughly twisting the material.

"Give it, now!"

The copper-colored plant refuses the order and jerks back quickly. Harkness hits the black dirt as the jacket surrenders one of its arms to the persistent weed. Jack picks himself up off the ground and walks away from the metal plant; he looks at the half sleeveless coat. The Captain steps past the Doctor and refuses to meet his gaze.

"It's not anymore," The Doctor states.

"What was that?" Harkness mutters, looking over the damage before throwing the ruined coat over his shoulder.

"No longer high quality- Oh, err… _That_ was an Erbium Predaceous," The Doctor explains, "Carnivorous metal weed. Nasty little buggers from the Revactooix system although those can't last in our atmosphere. It's the oxygen. Kills them the second they come into contact with it, water will too. This one is immune though- must be some kind of subspecies…"

Harkness shakes his head, and takes a second look at the cloth. He recalls what the Time Lord had said before, "It was hungry too, apparently."

Rose steps over to the wall and watches as the metal vines retreat towards the base of the plant. The leaves rattle loudly as the last of the sleeve disappears into the metal, clamp-like mouth; the weed suddenly stops moving altogether. Blue eyes widen, Rose watches the plant and seem to disappear as it settles against the rust tinted wall.

Footsteps hit the stones and Rose turns to see the Doctor walking up to the odd centerpiece of the strange garden. He removes square tortoiseshell glasses from his pocket in one motion and puts them into place before his eyes. The object continues to hum and flash red, oblivious to his presence. The Time Lord steps up onto a raised platform in the heart of the alien garden and leans closer to inspect the centerpiece. Rose follows after him, curious.

"What is it?"

The Doctor looks up for a moment, "Harmless."

He turns to her and rests his hands on the machine; suddenly, the red light turns a startling shade of silver. The humming noise the column had been emitting ceased and a high-pitched burst of sound took its place. The Doctor winces at the unexpected noise. Jack falls to the ground, his head nearly hitting the red wall. Rose stays in place and covers her ears, but it doesn't do any good. Suddenly, the noise stops; the three regain their composure and the Doctor turns to scrutinize the 'harmless' machine.

"What was that?" Rose asks cautiously.

The Time Lord replies, without turning to her, "_Mostly_ harmless… I think."

"But what did it just do?" Miss Tyler clarifies, "That awful noise… You think that someone could have heard it or something?"

"Possibly," The Doctor mutters, he puts a hand to his brainy specs and shifts them; he then leans closer to the column, "Maybe… Might be a beacon. 'S definitely activated by touch. Wonder what the purpose is though… There doesn't seem to be anyone out here. There could be something else it's supposed to do…"

Captain Harkness looks over to him from the ground uncertainly, and then turns back to the aggressive plants. He frowns at the red diamonds of light that had been redirected through the prism-like vines. It appeared as if there were words… He bent down closer to inspect the phantom text. It read:

_BAD WOLF_

Jack scowls at the two words. There they were yet again. It didn't matter where or when they traveled to: New New York, London, Mars, the Ninth Rim, Cardiff, Venus, Xenon 12, Edinburgh…those two words were always present. Or at least, they had been lately.

Captain Harkness was drawn out of his thoughts as the Doctor broke the silence.

"That's genius!" he shouts suddenly, turning back to Rose, "Brilliant really!"

She shifts and crosses her arms, "What is?"

"Something was supposed to hear it!" the Doctor shouts excitedly, "Something or someone set up this rig to alert them to visitors! Like us, that's why they placed this here- to alert them to our presence- works exactly like a doorbell. "

"Alert what?" Harkness asks, as he rises from the stone.

The Doctor turns quickly, he was staring out into the dark at something. The Time Lord's attention snaps to the left at a slight noise. Rose takes an uncertain step back and looks from the Doctor to whatever he was staring down.

"What is it?" she demands.

The Doctor doesn't answer, his gaze shifts to the right abruptly. His tense, hurried breaths are visible in the cold night air but he doesn't move.

"Tell me what it is!" Rose let out a scared shout; she looks over to Jack uncertainly.

Captain Harkness turns from the two as he hears a rustle of metal to his right. He stares out into the dark. His eyes widen as three thin, black legs charge by the light of the small garden. The metal weeds rustle again as another five are seen rushing past the Doctor. The Time Lord turns attentively as the strange form moves past.

"What was that?!" she moves towards the column, as far away from the dark as the garden would allow.

The Doctor moves away from the legs as he reaches down into his pockets. A small blue halo of light cut through the black. Jack watches as the light hits a third, then fourth pair of narrow, black legs. Captain Harkness takes a step forward, he watches as the Doctor searches the area for the creatures.

"What are they?" Jack demands.

The Doctor turns to the darkness and listens as the metal plants shift.

"I'm not entirely sure actually," the Time Lord replies.

xx

Not sure if it's going to be a full fledged 5+ chapter story but I can definitely say that a chapter two is needed. Not really much of a story so far but it's a work in progress. There's a note I forgot when I first started this fic... If you have arachnophobia, then this story isn't for you. Sorry.

If you see any errors, please tell me.

Amethyst


	2. Spiders DON'T click

Not much has changed from last week, I still can't claim any ownership whatsoever of _Doctor Who_ but I do happen to own a pinstripe suit.

**The Rather Ravenous Garden**

**~  
CHAPTER TWO**

"What?!" Rose looks over to the Doctor in alarm.

"How do you not know?" Jack watches the creatures even more closely now, "You're the Doctor!"

The Doctor turns the sonic screwdriver on the nearest metallic rustle of leaves. Some of the unnatural light reflects off the metal plants- returning back to the Doctor and his companion as small flecks of blue on their faces. A rustle to their left draws their attention and the Doctor watches as another five of the thin black legs become visible.

The three glimpse the body of the creatures- each had a dark round body that had occasional highlights of a bold silver, they all had the distinct sign of an arachnid in the form of eight spindly legs. They were spiders, huge spiders- monstrous even. Each of the bugs stood at least two feet tall and were about three and a half feet in length from what the Doctor had seen. Every one of them had nine large eyes that appeared to have a tint of green or teal and silver fangs that stood out against their black bodies. They all looked desperate.

"Well," the Time Lord begins, "they just look like garden spiders."

"A little _large _for garden spiders aren't they, Doc?" Jack watches one as it moves forward then back, watching his every move.

"Maybe a little. They're definitely alien… And they must be unique to the planet too, haven't seen them anywhere else... 'S not every day you see a creepy crawly that's larger than a house cat," The Doctor takes a step forward and looks out into the dark, "I've seen a bug the size of a- Wait!"

The Doctor pauses, listening hard, "What _is_ that? Didn't either of you notice it...? It doesn't make any sense… Nothing out here can cause that type of noise."

"What are you talking about?" Jack glances over to him.

"But it's still there. What could i be-?" the Time Lord stops mid sentence, and excited look spread cross his face, "No. No, no. It couldn't be. There's no way!"

The Doctor ignores his question and crouches down to the ground. He sweeps the glow of his sonic screwdriver across the ground before running a hand across the cold, hexagon shaped slabs of smooth marble that were pressed into the earth.

"I knew it! It's cobblestones," He states, "But there's _still_ that isn't there...? The ground wouldn't be enough to cause it by itself... Hmm."

"What?" Rose watches the Doctor rise and look out into the dark to the spiders, his sonic screwdriver acting as a flashlight.

"They're clicking," The Doctor summarizes, he then turns to Rose, "Spiders don't _click_."

"What are they then?" Jack walks over to the two, stopping near the Doctor.

"Must be inorganic," he continues, "Maybe made of some type of metal…like those plants over there."

"Robots then?" the blonde turns to the Doctor, alarmed.

"There's a very good possibility," he pauses correcting himself, "Not necessarily _good_, there aren't many good robots that I know of... So it's a very likely possibility that they are robots."

The Doctor stops suddenly and quickly circles the platform that the silver column-device was on. He watches as the spiders follow his movement in the metal weeds surrounding the platform and his confusion grows as he notices something strange.

"That's unusual."

Captain Harkness looks to the Time Lord, "What is?"

"Haven't you noticed? Its just- for some reason they aren't coming within ten feet of this device here… It has to be emitting some sort of wave-"

The Doctor moves back to Rose's side and crouches at the base of the column and uses his screwdriver to open up an invisible panel at the machines side. Placing the sonic tool between his teeth, he then reaches for the sides of the metal plate and sets it on the ground. The Time Lord stares into the mass of pulsing lights and metal coils, after a moment of thought he raises his hand to his mouth and lowers the screwdriver to the machine.

"Like I thought..." he begins after a moment, "It's sending out a 9 GHz longitudinal terrasonic wave that practically disables any thermal imaging scanners within a ten foot radius… All this post is doing is harnessing the elements of corundum and lithium neonate so that any heat waves coming from our bodies can't be detected. All they can sense are our movements, but without that they'd be completely blind.

"There must be another shield that isn't allowing them to get near this machine. Something that doesn't like the type of metal they're made of…" the Doctor mutters, "That's what's keeping them away. But they've seen our movements- they're too curious to leave this area alone."

"What about the waves, can they hurt us?" Rose says as she looks down to the panel.

The buzz of the screwdriver cuts into the conversation as the Doctor continues to work on the machine. The blue light lights up his face as the sonic screwdriver buzzes on and off.

"No," he says as he works, "Well, they might give you a bit of a headache after a while but if it's part of what's currently keeping us from being attacked then I guess we're safe until either they go away or the power runs down…"

"How long do we have until that happens?"

The Doctor pauses his work with the column to answer Jack.

"I'd say about twenty minutes-" The Doctor is cut off as the machine gives a low hum and it's lights dim.

"Or now," The Doctor hurries to find a way to power the machine back up, "Now is just as inconvenient."

Rose stares out at the spiders as they continue to step back and forth in the grass, they circle the platform tirelessly as if nothing had changed. It took her a moment to realize that they were growing in number. Even though Rose couldn't see more than three of the spiders together at a time, she notices that the clicking that the Doctor had mentioned earlier was getting louder. She could hear them, millions of the tiny clicks as the metal legs tap against the ground.

After a moment she looks to the Doctor in confusion, "Why aren't they trying to kill us?"

"It'll take them about two minutes and forty-nine seconds to realize that we don't have any power. They're thermal imaging cameras will be up soon too." The Doctor answers as he hurries with his work, "Then..."

"And then what?" Jack says, looking out at the legs weaving in and out of view in the copper field.

Miss Tyler stares out into the sea of thin black legs. The sight was an arachnophobes worst nightmare. She listens as the clicking continues, then glances to Jack as he looks out at the spiders. She could see now that they both didn't know what to do. They both looked to the Doctor for guidance in that one moment where decisions could mean the difference life or death. The Doctor was what kept them alive through all this, all of these wonderful adventures through time and space. What if this was one of those times when he didn't have the answer? When the Doctor couldn't fix things and make them better? When everything ended in pain and suffering?

She glances to the Doctor as he stops to look up at Jack. Rose sees the excitement and worry and his eyes and she knows that she has to trust him no matter what the odds are. Because he's the Doctor. And she knows he's seen situations far worse than this, when there are things more terrifying than spiders that get in the way of his saving the universe or trying to get them all out alive.

"Then we're in trouble." The Doctor replies as he glances to the ex-time agent.

"Big, ugly, fanged trouble." Jack agrees as he watches the creatures.

* * *

It's seems a bit short but there was such a nice cliffy there I couldn't pass it up. Maybe the bit with Rose doubting the Doctor didn't match the tempo of the rest of the chapter but it couldn't fit anywhere else and you have to wonder if any of the Doctor's companions ever doubt him. Even a little bit... I've decided that the fic should be updated weekly, so expect to see Chapter Three soon!

~Amethyst


	3. Like old crisps

It's not my TARDIS but I'll drive if I want to… Nope, still don't have any ownership at all of D_octor Who_ but that doesn't stop me from borrowing the Doctor's ship every once in a while does it?

**_The Rather Ravenous Garden_**

**CHAPTER THREE**

"What do we do now?" Rose panics, she looks down to the Doctor uncertainly.

"Wait..." He mutters, the buzzing of the sonic screwdriver fills the air again as he continues to work.

"Wait?" his companion panics. "We can't just sit 'ere and do nothing! This can't be the end- you can't just give up. They're only spiders!"

"Just give me a moment."

The Doctor continues working with his sonic tool after glancing up to Rose for a moment. The machine continues it's low sorrowful hum as if it was aware of what it was putting its guests through. The Doctor sweeps his blue light on several areas of the machine but it doesn't give him anything more than a low whine as the lights nearly go out. The Time Lord sighs and begins to stand; he stares over to the bugs harshly.

"Look at them," he continues to glare at the bugs, "so eager!"

The three watch as the spiders run frantically around and around the circle. They crawl over and under each other, racing, barely able to keep still at all in anticipation.

"Oh, just look at them!" The Doctor says energetically, "They can tell we're losing power; they can feel it in their circuits-!"

The Time Lord scans group of spiders as they scramble around impatiently just outside the shield, "It's driving them mad that they have to wait." He smirks, "Absolutely insane!"

Captain Harkness looks over to the Doctor, when he sees the Doctor's smile he begins to wonder if their doom has finally broken something inside him. He wonders if the Doctor's finally gone mad or has found the solution to their problems, the brilliant solution that would save their lives.

"They can't stand it, they know that they've got us cornered and that we can't stop them... But what they don't know-." the Doctor eyes them as he moves his arm to the column behind him, "Is that in about seventeen seconds…"

Rose sees the Time Lord reach backwards for a small golden button at the top of the device as he talks. She didn't remember seeing anything like that there before.

"We'll be gone."

As he says those last three words, the air snaps with static as an invisible shield dissipates. The terrasonic wave breaks its hold on the spiders' thermal imaging cameras and they rush forward towards the Doctor and his two companions.

There were just standing there, waiting to die. Waiting for the spiders to claim them. Jack, Rose and the Doctor watch as the spiders advance in a wave of black. Rose freezes in terror as the ones nearest to them stop, then rear up onto their hind sets of legs in confusion.

Both she and Jack look to the Doctor for an answer before they notice the ground.

It was lighting up, brighter and brighter beneath them. It nearly matched the glow of the stars above them, that couldn't be seen through the mist that blanketed the area. The humming of the machine behind the three grew louder and began to drown out the clicking and tapping of the metal spiders. They watch the spiders dance as if the very light underneath them began to burn their metal circuits; each of them then disappear into the darkness.

They all stand there for a moment, two of them waiting for the spiders to return again- the last knowing better. They watch the circle of light beneath them grow until they are forced to shut their eyes; when they open them again they notice a softer white light in its place. The three travelers look around their new surroundings.

They notice that the walls appear rough and grainy like rocks but the floor shares the same hexagon plates as in the garden. There was the occasional little metal stem or twig that was growing from in-between the plates on the floor but these were visible only because of lamps that were hanging from the side of the walls.

"Where are we?" Jack asks, watching the Doctor as he looks up towards the ceiling.

"It's either a cavern or a tunnel, or maybe a pocket of air near a magma chamber." The Doctor says as he brings his eyes back down towards the earth grimly. "Let's hope that it's not the last one, then. But we are underground though."

"How can you tell?" Rose steps over to the wall and places a hand on the dark rocks.

"It's the air." The Doctor turns around to face her and Jack, "It's stale. Like old crisps."

Jack turns quickly to one end of the underground hall they were standing in. He looks around expectantly, scanning for some sort of life.

"What is it?" Rose asks uncertainly. "Is someone there?"

"Or something." Jack voices his fears. "Maybe more of those creatures, the spiders."

"Last time I checked, spiders didn't wear boots, Jack. There are footsteps, it's probably humanoid." The Doctor continues, "...Footsteps? But who could it be…?"

The footsteps grow louder and echo against the rocky walls; the Doctor and his companions hear shouting from the others nearby. Rose watches as a group of ten or so crowd around them. The silver-skinned men hold their short spears steadily at the three intruders. The two humans raise their hands up slowly as the Doctor glances from one member of the small army to another.

Each of the natives wore loose-fitting, dark black cloak that covered their eyes and face. Their bare feet and hands were the only things that were visible in the weak light. The spears that they all held were rough and poorly made, the spearheads were transparent as though they were made of glass. The occasional reddish-brown or golden feather was tied to the weapons shaft.

"Hello." The Doctor says, trying to lighten up the tense situation. "Come here often?"

"Who would you be?" one of the ten begins; he steps forward into the small circle using his spear as a staff.

Jack and Rose look to the Doctor expectantly, still uncertain about their welcome party. The others were tense as well, their spears moved with every word.

"Those are my thoughts exactly." The Doctor replies looking over to his companions, their hands still raised to the rocky ceiling.

* * *

I thought I wasn't going to make it with the Sunday deadline… So glad I did! About the descriptions… The spears are short, about three and a half feet in length and generally about the size of a broom handle in width; they are made out of strong limbs of a native species of tree which have black bark. The trees may come into the story later… The glass looking spearheads are melted to the end of the stick. Remember the plants earlier? The weeds were made of 'organic metal' so to speak- the trees are the same.

~Amethyst


	4. Loves chips

No, I do not own _Doctor Who_. But I do own _this_ wonderful clicking spider idea, and the garden. It's not going to win me any blue ribbon awards or anything but, you know… It's mine.

**_The Rather Ravenous Garden_**

**CHAPTER FOUR**

The warriors watch them carefully, the silence continues as they wait for the Doctor to introduce his companions. Rose and Jack still had their hands in the air; they were staring over at the Doctor- begging for help with their eyes. The spear wielding army was also getting impatient, they each began to shift on their feet, turning their spears to and from the Doctor to Jack to Rose.

They were ready to attack; they were nervous, anxious to begin.

"Explain." One of them begins; it was the same one who had stepped out before the others earlier. "Who are you?"

The Time Lord steps towards Rose and brings her hands down with his own.

"Thanks." She mutters breathlessly. "But I still don't understand... Who are they?"

The Doctor looks over to her, "Not now."

"Who is this one?" the warrior repeats impatiently.

"Her?" he glances from Rose to the man. "She's Rose. Good traveling companion even though she's not ginger. Rose… She's not much of a singer either." The Doctor watches as the group begins to ease up just a bit. "Loves chips."

"What about the other?" the man continues, he wasn't exactly as laid back as his troops were.

"That's Jack." He glances over to the Captain as he puts his arms down slowly. "He's great at _some_ parties, difficult to get rid of, and has the habit of getting uncomfortably close to most anyone he meets."

"Jack is with us." Rose cuts in, "He's human, like me."

"Human?" one of the others cut in. "Where do you come from?"

"They're from Earth." The Time Lord starts. "Not me though, I'm more of a wanderer. My home is a little bit of everywhere…"

Their leader turns toward the Doctor, "And you?"

"Me? I'm the Doctor," he pauses, "Not a medical doctor though, or a physicist of any kind. 'S not that I'm not good with matter. I'm very good with matter, any matter actually. But I'd guess I'd have to be a diplomat to claim that I was good with all matters…"

The Doctor takes a breath, "You know… Now that I think about it, I'm the best with politics at all. Most of the time… there's no time." He glances over to Rose with a grin on his face. "You got that, right? It's a bit strange, that."

He watches as the group with the spears begins to get impatient once more, testy.

"But Rose, she's good with that though." The Time Lord turns to Captain Harkness, "And Jack is… Well, more of an action man- to put it plainly."

"Well," the Captain begins, "You know us. But we don't know you…?"

The silver-skinned leader passes his spear over to another of the ten. He reaches up to his black hood and pushes it back to reveal his face. The man, the Doctor thought, actually was a young boy. He had a narrow nose in-between two gray eyes, and dark blue tattoos that looked like several stars on his left cheek and neck.

"I am Tychek." He motions for the others to lower their weapons, "How did you, Doctor, get into the tunnels?"

"Don't really know," The Doctor states, "I was kind of hoping you could answer that one. It wasn't teleportation was it?"

Tychek begins uncertainly, "There's no technology that we know of out this far-."

"There is though. It's not on the newer maps..." Another cuts in, "One of the older Terros stations must have ported them to the underground."

The Doctor looks over to the one who had just spoken, "Who are you then?"

"A friend," she lowers her hood. "I hope."

She had the same silver skin as the others but had deep purple eyes instead of Tychek's gray ones. Her skin lacked the ornate markings that Tychek's had, but she did have an array of small, dark blue, river stone shaped tattoos around the outside of her left eyebrow.

"Raechek." The leader begins, "Do you think that their kind could have activated the post?"

"It is possible." She states. "They aren't that different from us after all…"

Tychek pauses for a moment, thinking over something, "It isn't safe out here. We should go back to Atlentios."

"But they could be armed," a gruff voice cuts in. "The council will not welcome arm bearers-."

"Doctor?" Tychek looks over to the Time Lord, "You carry no weapons?"

"Weapons? Like guns?" the Doctor begins. "No. No, don't like guns. Don't like killing either. But that would be a plus to us wouldn't it?"

The Doctor clarifies, "If you're going to be traveling all around the universe, you can't go killing and or maiming every one you meet. They might take it personally."

"But his friends…" the gruff voice insists. "You can't take outsiders on their word!"

"Lenchek!" the gray-eyed leader barks. "Show our guests some respect!"

"They might-!" Lenchek pauses, stopping at a sudden noise.

The conversation is ended abruptly as Raechek turns her attention to the ceiling. The Doctor follows her motion and stares up at the rock overhead; Rose and Jack look around for an explanation.

"What is it?" Rose asks. "Is it dangerous?"

The Doctor looks over to Raechek and the others, the girl turns to Tychek abruptly.

"Clicking." The Doctor mutters. "Not good."

"It's them!" Lenchek states quickly. "The spiders, they're digging into the tunnels again!"

The group now began to look around, terrified. Raechek and Lenchek had panicked looks on their faces; several of the others began back down the tunnel in alarm.

"Tychek!" Raechek begins. "We have to leave!"

He turns toward the hall, the same direction they had come from before; Tychek motions for the others to move out.

"Go," he commands, turning to the Doctor. "We might all be able to reach a safe point before they get down here."

"You are allowing them access to the city?" Lenchek glares over at his leader his deep brown eyes cold and calculating, the only thing visible beneath his hood. "We can't-!"

Tychek turns quickly around to face his subordinate, his voice rising quickly, "I will not leave anyone to the spiders!"

With that, Raechek motions for the Doctor and his companions to follow after her and the others. Rose and Jack go ahead, but the Doctor hangs back to wait for Tychek and Lenchek. The Time Lord hears the later complain under his breath as he follows Rose and the Captain.

Tychek pushes past the grumbling Chekorin as he tries to catch up to the others, "We will talk about this later Lenchek!"

* * *

I really cut it close this time! Been working on four all morning. Please contact me if you see anything wrong with it grammatically or just plain confusing. To review: The Chekorins live at a place called Atlentios (which is- in fact, a play on the mythical city of Atlantis which will be explained in the next chapter). They all have 'chek' as the last four letters in their name and have strange eye colors. And as far as this chapter can tell you- they really don't like it when the clicking spiders get into their underground tunnels.

~Amethyst


	5. Nothing IS Something

Me? Nope. Don't own _Doctor Who_. Tell you what I have got though… Legs. I've still got legs.

**_The Rather Ravenous Garden_**

**CHAPTER FIVE**

"What is she doing?" Rose glances from Raechek to the Doctor.

She turns back to the Time Lord as the Chekorin continues her work, "Probably setting barriers for the spiders. They should have something set up to prevent them from reaching their city but there's no way to know how long it would keep them out for."

The Chekorin reaches out towards the wall, in seconds the tunnel is cut off by the bright silver glow of a force shield. The tunnel is lit up for at least twenty feet on either side of the shield. It hums softly as Raechek turns back to the group.

"We should keep going," she says as she turns to Tychek. "The spiders will catch up eventually and we cannot risk leading them back to the citadel."

"Let us go then." Tychek says as he steps forward.

He motions for them to continue and the group of warriors sets off again. Captain Harkness turns from the warriors to the Doctor and Rose.

"Where are they taking us again?" Jack asks. "Atlentios? It sounds a lot like Atlantis."

"It might be underwater…" The Doctor glances over to Rose, "there's also the possibility that the name may have come from Earth myths, given to them by the first humans they came into contact with…but there's no way to know that for sure."

"Why's that?" Rose looks over to the Doctor.

"They could be descendants of you humans." The Time Lord says, watching the nearest silver-skinned man, "Earth humans reached the stars and far beyond once your Earth burned. You were everywhere, everyplace imaginable." He grins, looking over to Rose. "The Great Explorer Race."

"So they might be related to us," Jack begins. "But what about those spiders?"

"Not sure about those things." The Doctor says, speeding up his pace a little. "They may be native to the planet but it's more likely that someone created them… Or _something_. Give me a second."

The Captain and Miss Tyler watch as their Time Lord chaperone nearly runs to Tychek's side. A couple of the nearby Chekorins watch the outsider carefully, their spears at the ready. The Doctor takes little notice of the warriors on stand by. He looks over to Tychek.

"It's a nice tunnel you have here." He glances over to the scout leader as he leads the group onwards, "Very closed in. But that'd keep spiders or worms or beetles or whatever it is that you want kept out _out _right?"

The silver-skinned man kept silent, as they got further down the passageway.

"Now, me personally…" The Time Lord continues. "I would have painted it a nice, bright banana yellow instead of leaving it this dull rock colour. I mean, there are some nice silvers and browns in there, but you can't beat _banana _yellow: it's in a completely different league-."

"Doctor," Tychek begins calmly, "What is it that you want?"

The Doctor looks over to him attentively then quickly glances back to Rose and Jack before speaking, "What's going to happen to us three? Well, once we reach the city that is. Your man Lenchek wasn't exactly enthusiastic about our arrival."

At the mention of his name, Lenchek instantly becomes more attentive to their conversation. The Doctor notices the Chekorins behaviour completely change; Lenchek watches the two intently out of the corner of his vision.

He pauses a moment before replying, "The council will talk with you, they will make the final decision on whether or not to…"

Tychek stops, the silence overwhelming the two of them.

"To what?" The Doctor looks over to him expectantly as he stops.

"You might be expelled from the city…imprisoned… Or worse."

Tychek leaves the Doctor, walking ahead of the Time Lord as the later stops in the tunnel and hangs back while Rose and Jack catch up. Two or so of the hooded Chekorins walk past the Doctor, glancing curiously at him as they pass. Captain Jack and Rose pause as they reach the Doctor's side in the tunnel.

The rest of the group stops as Raechek turns around to activate a second force shield inside the tunnel.

"Doctor?" Rose asks. "What happened?"

"Nothing. Just asked him if they've considered repainting the place." The Doctor says with a counterfeit smile. "This tunnel is awfully drab. Suggested banana yellow as an alternative…"

Rose grins at the Time Lords recommended color. Jack isn't completely convinced and it shows through his actions. The ex-time agent crosses his arms and grimaces at the Doctor's misdirection.

"Why don't you go up and talk with Raechek?" he grins over to Rose. "She's more likely to take the new colour seriously. Maybe you can get some information?"

The two watch as Miss Tyler heads towards the Chekorin and just as she gets out of earshot, Jack breaks the silence.

"What is it?" Captain Harkness looks over to the Time Lord. "What's going on?"

The Doctor's smile vanishes, his entire façade drops.

He glares over at Jack, urging him to drop the topic. "It's _nothing_."

"No. It's _something_ Doctor." Jack insists. "I've known you for too long."

He sees the Time Lord give a dark sigh. "What is it?"

"We might be in trouble once we reach the city." He admits, looking over to the Captain, "Best be on our best behaviour once we get there."

"They might hurt us…?" Jack looks over to the Doctor's other companion. "Shouldn't we tell Rose?"

"Later," The Doctor insists, "We don't want to panic-."

Their conversation is put on hold as Lenchek turns about to face the Doctor and the rest of the group quickly. Tychek stops and watches his subordinate as he turns on the Doctor. Lenchek steps up in front of the Doctor and Jack in the blink of an eye, he stares at the both of them before glancing over to Rose. She flinches away from his unexpected glare.

"What are you doing?" she nearly whispers.

"They are plotting!" Lenchek's gruff voice breaks the silence after Rose's comment. "Planning our deaths as we live and breathe!"

"Lenchek!" Tychek barks. "I have warned you about this before! This is insubordination, treason even, to go against a command!"

Lenchek turns darkly to Tychek, "I am merely exposing these traitors before they have a chance to do damage to our Atlentios! Even now," he points to Jack and the Doctor, "_these_ were scheming behind our backs!"

Sinister clicking echoes off the walls…the spiders were catching up.

Lenchek gives a dark smile that vanishes in a millisecond, "They have brought the spiders to us!"

Tychek glances over to the Doctor and Jack, then back to the tunnels behind them, as the clicking grows louder. The others watch his expression as the last shield Raechek had set vanishes and the extra light fails. The tunnel goes dark, only the light of the wall lamps allows visibility. The humming of the shield is replaced by the erratic clicking of the metal spiders.

"…" Tychek glances from The Doctor to the bold Lenchek. "Go." Tychek mutters.

"GO!"

The Doctor takes Rose's hand as they and Jack run down the tunnel after the Chekorins.

* * *

Nope. Didn't think I was going to make it this time either. Lenchek is really annoying, isn't he? But then again… He is offering some interesting lines for me to write. That's what I'm trying to work on right now. Dialogue and regular updates.

~Amethyst


	6. A spider's snack

I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. If you thought that this story was spider free...it's not. And, if you missed the first _five_ disclaimers- I claim no ownership of _Doctor Who_ whatsoever.

**_The Rather Ravenous Garden_**

**CHAPTER SIX**

The Doctor glances back to the spiders as he runs- they were catching up. He then looks back to Rose and Raechek who was running beside her. Tychek and Lenchek disappear somewhere ahead of them in the tunnel with a number of the other soldiers. The Doctor dashes ahead of Jack and Rose as he searches for the others in the dark.

"Where are the others?" he glances over to Raechek.

"They took separate tunnels which branch off of this one." she explains, "They are smaller, the spiders won't be able to find them."

"There aren't any more of those conveniently close by, are there?" The Doctor grabs for Rose's hand and pulls her with him as he turns a corner. His companion barely misses being swiped at by the bugs; she stares back at them in alarm as she runs.

"Please say yes…!" he adds hurriedly.

"I'm sorry. There aren't." Raechek gives a nod as she runs, getting ahead of Jack and Rose, "There is another shield. It is less than a quarter kilometer before we reach the next on-."

A shout cuts her off as it echoes down the tunnel from behind them, a Chekorin warrior had been taken. The clicking of the metal spiders stops for a moment and the Doctor turns back instinctively to run towards the scream, to help. Raechek reaches out to him, to hold him back before he can start off. He turns to face her at the touch.

"Let go!" the Time Lord pushes her hand off his shoulder, "I can save him!"

"You cannot!" she insists. "Come, please! We have to be quick- they will not be stopped for long!"

It takes the Doctor less than a second to make his decision before they were off again. The spiders were too.

They continue their sprint down the dark tunnel. The Doctor hears more clicking and looks back to Jack in alarm. Captain Harkness notices the noise too, of course; he turns back to see a group of three spiders not far behind him. He grimaces at the Doctor, the spiders get closer.

"Not again… Not here. I don't want to die." he bares his teeth as he runs, "Not by _spiders_."

"Run, Jack!" The Doctor shouts back to him. "Come on!"

"You know what?" The Time Lord notices a grin on the immortal's face, "This is some kind of payback for all those times I crushed little spiders in the shower isn't it? …Karma really sucks!"

The Doctor doesn't reply. He grins wildly over to Rose, who smiles. They speed up as they see what appears to be a shield station in the distance, a safe point. Rose smiles in relief. The only thing to do now was to get to the shield and get it up _before_ the spiders reached them. Miss Tyler glances back as one of the arachnids' stops suddenly in the middle of the tunnel before leaping into the air towards them all.

"Run!" Rose shouts. "Jack!"

Captain Harkness turns back to look just as the spider reaches him. The robot lands on him and its weight alone pins him to the ground; the spiders silver fangs centimeters from his face. Jack wrestles the bug and tries to push it off. The spider gives a sharp hiss of static as it lunges for his face once more.

"Jack!" she shouts again.

Captain Harkness pushes the metal fangs away, "Get out of here!" he snarls.

"But-!"

"Ah!" he stops her, "Go on-!"

She watches as the other spiders surround him, blocking her view of the ex-time agent. Rose stops almost immediately.

"Jack!" she shouts, "Doctor, we have to go back for him!"

"We can't!" The Doctor glances back at the advancing spiders as he pulls Rose along, "He'll be fine."

"But Doctor-!"

"No, Rose!" he looks over to her sharply as they continue to run.

Raechek was a bit ahead of them in the tunnel; she faces the shield and hurriedly types away at the interface panel. The same red text kept appearing over and over again, as the database refused the command code. The Doctor and his companion reach the Chekorin's side, another two Chekorin warriors flee the spiders as they charge down the passageway after the group. Raechek gives the screen a tap as the outdated technology beeps in refusal. He whips his brainy specs out and puts them on before looking over Raechek's shoulder at the display. The Doctor watches the characters on the screen fly past and flash brightly.

"Doctor! They're getting closer!"

At Rose's voice, the Time Lord glances away from the screen.

They were, in fact, marching nearer. Another one of the spiders leaps through the air and brings a Chekorin to the ground with its weight. The spiders had their sights set on the last warrior, and the Doctor knew that after the last Chekorin fell the spiders would go after himself and Rose. He looks to the screen again in panic. The spiders were moving faster than the text on the screen. At this rate the spiders would have them before Raechek had a chance to get the shield up. At this rate he and Rose wouldn't… The Doctor's eyes widen, he licks his lips worriedly to try to bring his voice back.

"I'm sorry," the Time Lord interjects, looking quickly from Raechek to the spiders, "So sorry. But how much longer is that going to take?"

"I'm-" The Chekorin's voice breaks, she looks from the keys to the screen in frustration, "I- I do not know."

"Do you mind if I-?" he asks, moving to the side of the tunnel.

"No! Go ahead!" Raechek steps out of the way then glances over at the fast approaching spiders. "Hurry!"

The Doctor jumps over to the screen in a panic, hitting every key and pressing every button that the input board had. Rose watches as his face lights up at every sequence he enters. His eyebrows screw together in confusion as the display goes a bright red, the light reflects off his glasses. The screen gives a sharp buzz of irritation and the Doctor taps it in annoyance. Raechek watches as the Doctor reaches down into his pockets for something.

"Come on, come on!" he fumbles through the contents of his pockets, "There!"

He holds up the sonic screwdriver triumphantly. The Doctor turns toward the machine and the blue glow cuts through the dark of the tunnel. The whirring of the screwdriver is almost inaudible as the spiders draw closer. Raechek watches as the Doctor's device clears the screen of all text. The Doctor then looks up from the panel to the spiders, which were still headed towards them and then to the area where the shield should have been. It still hadn't come up.

The spiders continue through the dim tunnel.

"Come on." The Doctor mutters to himself. "Come on… Think!"

Rose watches as he reaches up and runs a hand through his hair, "What's wrong?" the Doctor continues, muttering to himself, "What did you do wrong?"

He grips the sonic screwdriver in determination as he turns to face the display screen again. The Doctor types hurriedly away at the keys. He stops all of a sudden and looks over to the section of the tunnel where a circle was cut into the stone from the ceiling to the floor and the walls in-between, where the shield should be. Rose follows his gaze and runs over to the wall with him.

"What are we looking for?" she asks.

The Doctor takes the other side of the tunnel, "Anything! Anything that would block the shield!"

Raechek watches as the two comb the sides of the tunnel, she glances to the spiders that were less than thirty seconds away. The spiders, all hissing as they charge towards the Doctor and his companion, get closer and closer. One runs ahead of the others and stops just in front of the Doctor. It throws up its front legs and gives a sharp hiss. The spider's sharp metal legs were extremely close to the Doctor's neck.

The Time Lord looks up and, as the hissing grows louder, says something under his breath.

This just wasn't his day.

* * *

This chapter is definitely better than the others. Or at least, that's what I think. I have a poll up for this story on my profile page, where you can tell me how I'm doing so far if you aren't the reviewing sort. And if you are, please leave some criticism or something of that nature- chapter seven will be up next Sunday regardless.

Amethyst


	7. Shields are wonderful things

This link is bigger on the inside. Isn't that amazing? No. No it isn't. I don't own _Doctor Who_ but I do have a plot. Somewhere. If only I could find it…

**_The Rather Ravenous Garden_**

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

The Doctor felt a light tap on his shoulder and felt the cool of the metal through his suit. He glared up at the bug as it gave a startled hiss. The Doctor was forced to close his eyes as a bright light nearly blinded him.

Suddenly, the clicking of the spiders was drowned out by a hum and a short hiss of steam that stopped nearly as soon as it had began. The humming however, was an entirely different matter. It wasn't exceedingly loud; and it wasn't musical, as it had no beat or rhythm; it was soft and continuous- the humming. The plainness of the noise is what confused the Doctor at first, before he realized that the humming was only part of it. A white light blanketed the area around him as well. It was the shield.

The Doctor looked up to the spider that had, only moments before, been within centimeters from him. The spindly thing was now moving back and forth on the other side of the shield in confusion, in shock. One of its legs, the Doctor had noted, was missing its black tip. The dented up spider quickly disappeared as the rest of the swarm caught up, it was practically undistinguishable from the others in the confusion. The Doctor, Rose, and Raechek watched as the spiders ran back into the darkness of the tunnel and vanished from their vision.

"They're gone." Raechek sighed in relief.

The Doctor, on the other hand, was still a bit confused; he turned back to Rose, "What was it that was blocking the shield?"

"Tiny." Rose gave a small grin as the Doctor picked himself up from the ground, "The smallest thing…" she said.

The Doctor looked to her in confusion as the blonde raised her hand to show him. The object in her hand was not only small and smooth, but appeared to be a dull bronze in colour. _That_ was all that stood between the Doctor and the spiders. It was the smallest thing but one of the most important- it was the difference between the Doctor's life or his death.

"Looks like a stone, yeah?" Rose glanced over to him, smiling.

"Well, I'd say it's… uh," the Doctor stepped over closer to Rose and peered down at the stone seriously, "more of a _pebble_ really. Stones are more… biggish and such."

He met Rose's eyes and the two broke into a wide grin, in seconds they were laughing.

Raechek was the one who sobered the pair up a little, "Are you both mad?"

"Rose? No. But me…" he Doctor looked over to her still smiling, "I'm certified in two galaxies, three solar systems, and one planet. Well, they say it's not _really _a planet… it's kind of controversial. They've been switching its 'planet-ness' on and off for centuries."

"Pluto? The big frozen rock out on the edge of the solar system?" Rose glanced to him curiously, "But I thought it was uninhabited?"

"Your Pluto is deserted- nothing but a huge chunk of ice floating around out there. But back in 125 B.C. there were plenty of people." the Doctor continues, "Thousands of them. You wouldn't get away with calling it an icy rock without being blasted out of the cosmos. Or rather, _attempted_ to be blasted out of the cosmos. Shields are wonderful things…

"'S too bad the Plutonian King didn't have much of a sense of humour... I'm sure we could have been great friends."

"With a King? From _Pluto_?" Rose watched him in disbelief.

"Why not?"

"And this is after that bit with the Queen wanting your head and having us chased on horseback, yeah?"

The Doctor turned to her, "You know…I still don't understand what she was on abou-"

Suddenly, a low buzzing was heard in the tunnel. The Doctor looked from the shield to Rose and then from Raechek to the sides of the tunnels all around them. His companion was just about as jumpy as he was; she looked around the tunnel in a slight panic.

"Is that the spiders again?" Rose asked as she stared up at the ceiling.

Raechek didn't reply as she turned away from the two slightly. The scientist pushed up a sleeve of her brown cloak to reveal a compact little watch-like device on her wrist. The screen was lit up a soft blue colour that cast Raechek's slender shadow on the opposite wall. Raechek pressed a button on the side of the device and the three heard Tychek's voice from inside the futuristic radio.

From where they were, Rose and the Doctor couldn't hear any of what was going on. Bits and pieces of the conversation were heard by the two- a line here, a sentence there. When the Doctor stepped forwards to hear him better, Raechek didn't mind. Rose stepped over to his side.

"Raechek," Tychek stated, "The mission has failed- there's no time now to get what we came for, and the suns have nearly risen. We will meet you back at Atlentios."

"What will the Doctor and his companion do?" Raechek glanced over to them as she spoke.

"They are welcome at the city, just-" static broke the transmission and the rest of Tychek's sentence was lost.

Raechek watched as the small watch gave out and shut down completely.

"Is he okay?" Rose asked as she looked down at the device.

Raechek turned from the shield, "Tychek is fine, it's only the radiation that interrupting the signal."

She gave the alien a lost look, "Radiation from what?"

"It's the suns." Raechek explained, "…Kech has two suns. One, Tror, is too far away from the surface and really only gives light. Zerto, the other one, is way too close; it got pulled into Kech's immediate orbit during the Ninth War. Zerto is what gives the planet all the extra radiation; it's why we've been living underground for the past century and a half. Nothing can survive up there during the daytime."

Raechek gave the shield one last look before she began down the tunnel with Rose and the Doctor right behind her.

"So _that's_ why you're down here," the Doctor said as he pulled the sonic screwdriver out of his pocket, "That's sad."

"It's not like we have a choice."

"I meant that a war destroyed your planet," The Doctor caught up to her, he held the sonic out like a torch to light their path, "your entire way of life. All of it gone and for what?"

There was silence for about eight metres before the Doctor broke it.

"What exactly is it that you lot were looking for out here?"

"An energy source." she said, "It's for the dome that protects the city. Lately it's been a bit dodgy, flickered a couple of times. The King says that we shouldn't worry but the power sources have been so rare… We might have to move again and find a new refuge."

"You need a battery?" Rose asked.

"It's a bit more than a battery, isn't it?" the Doctor looked over to Raechek, "Your whole civilization is on the brink of collapse because of it."

Raechek said nothing but her eyes met the floor with a quiet misery.

"Could you tell me something?" the Doctor said, "Why has the shield been powered by such a rare energy source to begin with?"

"It wasn't always rare." the scientist stated, "Only lately, since the spider attacks and sightings have become much more frequent."

The three had reached the end of the tunnel and Raechek had walked over to a panel in the wall. She opened it and revealed a control panel with at least fifteen different buttons, the scientist set to work on the pass code needed to open the doors.

"The spiders…" Rose glanced over to the Doctor, "Could they be linked to the batteries somehow?"

"Maybe." the Doctor replied, "Raechek. About the spiders… What happens to the people they take away?"

Raechek's eyes were distant as she replied, "There's no way to know. In one hundred and fifty years, no one has been seen or heard from again."

* * *

Ooh, scary right? I'm so, so sorry that I took such a long time. Vacations now and again do you good. Anyways, I hope I didn't over inform you about the planet and such. And I'm kind of sorry that the chapter was mainly dialogue… Don't worry about the Ninth War and stuff like that. I'm just trying to give the planet a bit of a back-story and make it seem a bit more 3-D. Kech was around before the TARDIS landed there you know.

Amethyst


End file.
